Missouri And Other States Face Potentially Costly Dilemma Over Treating Inmates With Hep C

There is controversy about inmate access to hepatitis C treatment in prison.

In a corner of her house in Sparta in southwest Missouri, Jymie Jimerson has set up a kind of shrine. It has Native American art representing her Cherokee heritage alongside Willie Nelson albums, books and photos in remembrance of her late husband. On one side is a copy of Willie’s mid-’70s LP, “Red Headed Stranger.”

“When Steve was young, he had red hair and a red beard, so he always really identified with Willie’s Red Headed Stranger,” Jimerson says. “I try to keep it up there as a reminder of better days.”

Steve Jimerson was sentenced to life in prison in 1996 for his role in the shooting deaths of two men. Jymie says her husband’s life had been ravaged by drug abuse, but after he entered prison, he got sober and become a mentor for other inmates.

“Once he got inside, recovery became his life,” Jymie says. “And that was his passion until the day he died.”

Steve Jimerson died at age 59 on January 6, 2017 due to complications from Hepatitis C, a liver infection that’s especially widespread among prison inmates but, in recent years, rarely treated in prison.

Civil liberties groups in Missouri and at least seven other states are now suing to get more inmates treated with new-generation Hep C drugs that are highly effective but also very costly.

After Steve Jimerson was diagnosed with Hep C while in prison, Jymie says he closely watched for news of treatment developments.

In 2013, Gilead Sciences introduced Sovaldi, the first of a new generation of drugs called direct-acting antivirals that can cure Hep C in many cases with minimal side effects. But the excitement was dampened by the drug’s price. A full course of treatment cost $84,000.

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